I’ll admit it. Writing this article is extremely self-gratifying. I’m so proud that RI Families in Nature, the family hiking club I started over five and a half years ago, is partnering with the Roger Williams Park Zoo this October through July to offer new opportunities for families to experience nature and have fun – for free!

The Zoo was one of 30 recipients of a Nature Play grant, which was developed by the Children & Nature Network (C&NN) and the Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA) through a special gift from the Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund. This grant will allow us to offer free nature based play experiences in various parks, playgrounds, preserves, and other properties that are off zoo grounds – but easy to get to!

We’re calling them “Family Nature Play Dates” and they will include a series of structured and unstructured activities focused on a particular wildlife theme such as butterflies or nocturnal animals. Best part is that you’ll have tons of family fun – outside – for an hour or so. If you’re not already aware of the many, many benefits of spending time in nature, they will truly amaze you (click here to learn more).

And as a bonus, you will earn large amounts of points that you can use to through the Zoo’s Nature Swap. Participants in the program bring in natural “found” items to collect points for swapping with items in their collection. To learn more, go to their website.

Jeanine is a self-described tree hugging, science and math geek whose love of nature, coupled with her absolute certainty that people, especially children, are happier, healthier, and wiser when they regularly spend time in nature, led her to establish Rhode Island Families in Nature. Jeanine also works for the RI Environmental Education Association, supporting formal and informal teachers as they create "place-based" curriculum. She loves to hike, run, garden, bake, and go camping, especially when accompanied by her husband, Ian, her daughter, Sierra, and her son, Devin. They live in Wakefield.